Artist Trading Cards: ATC's

I am an ATC "virgin," however I think that is about to change, mainly because I really love the art of the ATC, the ability to go a step further then when doing a card, and also because they are a whole lot smaller then cards.

And I LOVE the artist quality to ATC's, especially like the one on the left. Embossed, stamped image, creative background, this ATC is really a work of art.

Have you ever created ATC's? No? Ok, then how about a video that explains them a bit, click here to view the video, and then let us go exploring for some links on ATC's.

First of all ATC's are wonderful cards that you trade or swap, they are never sold, and they are always the same size, 2.5"x3.5". You can do anything you want to an ATC, paint it, stamp it (of course : ), emboss it, layer it, embellish it, and swap it.

ATC's are also a nice way to experiment with color, techniques, stamps you don't always use, layers and just so many different things! I have a few retro stamps that should make for some nice ATC's, dig out stamps you haven't used in a while and just play around!

ATC's are a great way to use your talents and share them with the world. If you are interested in doing an ATC swap, leave a comment and if enough people sign up we will have our own, very first AfterHoursStamper ATC swap. More then likely we will trade/swap with just one person, and for this first time (if we get enough folks, let us say ten or more) we will just do what ever we want. If enough people have an interest, this could be something that I would be willing to host and organzie each month.

Here are some links about ATC's, and remember, if you are interested in doing a trade /swap via snail mail, leave your name in the comments and email me at AfterHoursStamper at gmail dot com. I will collect the names and addresses and match everyone up.

Here we go:

• ATC Swap: The FAQ section has all the information you need to understand what ATC's are and also some neat history. Start here to get a good understanding of what ATC's are and how they are used.

• ATC Bot: Wow, talk about swaps! Here is a whole "sheetload" of swaps for you to get started with, I may join a few myself : )

• ATC Gallery at SCS: There are just thousands of cards here for you to view, to get ideas and to drool over : )

• Above the Mark: Some really neat images here for you to browse through. ATC's can be anything you like, and maybe you might want to branch out and try one of these neat images for an ATC : ). I LOVED this image:
  

Can you imagine what you could create with the image above? All sorts of things.

ATC's are yet another way to enjoy and share your love of rubber stamping, and it is a bit easier to tackle a small trading card rather then a larger greeting card.

So, let me know if you would like to parttake in a swap here on AfterHoursStamper, and also, if you already do ATC's, please post a link in the comments to your work, we would love to see what you have created.

Tomorrow is a busy day for me, hopefully I can take a few pictures of cards I made the other day that were simple and quick, we shall see though, more likely they will get posted on Wednesday or Friday.

Have a GREAT rest of the evening, and remember that tomorrow is a brand new day filled with nothing but opportunity.